Would you eat at a restaurant inspired by cat food? New NYC pop-up is giving humans the purrfect chance

August 2, 2022, 11:16 AM UTC
Young Persian kitten with blue eyes eating from blue bowl on floor.
Fancy Feast is offering cat-owners the chance to understand how their pets experience flavor and texture
Benjamin Torode—Getty Images

Dedicated cat lovers are being given the opportunity to understand their pets on a deeper level as cat-food brand Fancy Feast is expanding its horizons beyond felines. 

Fancy Feast is opening up an “Italian-style trattoria” in New York for a limited time only for humans wanting to experience textures and flavors their cat might also enjoy. 

The restaurant is called Gatto Bianco, meaning “white cat” in Italian, and is based between Manhattan’s Far West Village and the Meatpacking District.

When can you book?

Those wanting to try it for themselves will need to pounce quickly, as there are only 16 spaces available for pairs and reservations are only available August 11–12, with bookings opening up on August 4. 

It opens to celebrate the launch of the brand’s new “Medley’s” line of dishes for felines that have more of an acquired taste. 

Medleys offers meals such as “Beef Ragú Recipe With Tomatoes & Pasta in a Savory Sauce,” and restaurant guests might expect something similar.

Of course, customers won’t be served cat food.

Instead, they’ll be treated to a complimentary tasting menu put together by the brand’s in-house chef Amanda Hassner and acclaimed New York restaurateur Cesare Casella. 

Connecting animals and humans

This is not the first time Fancy Feast has given owners a taste of what they serve to their pets as the company released a human cookbook in 2021 featuring recipes that pair with the pets’ cuisine.

Gatto Bianco’s offerings are inspired by the cookbook, which features recipes such as “Salmone con pomodorini and vegetable agrodolce” and “Brasato di Manzo with Spinaci e Polenta.”

The aim of this unusual foodie venture is to connect cats and their owners.

“The dishes at Gatto Bianco are prepared in ways that help cat owners understand how their cats experience food—from flavor, to texture, to form—in a way that only Fancy Feast can,” Hassner says. 

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